Archive for June 27, 2013

You know…… we did SO much work, emails, interview, cooking, photos, more emails, more questions, and then the newspaper pulled the article because I wouldn’t rewrite my recipes to their specifications? (Check the previous post for background information.)

Specifications? What specifications? Obviously, I wasn’t advised of any specifications. My recipes are stress-free, laid-back, a little of this, a little of that, add more cilantro if you like cilantro, don’t add the red pepper flakes if you don’t like spicy food, you really don’t have to measure specifically, so enjoy it.

That being said, they wanted precise measurements and that’s not me. It’s just not how I write and that’s been the sticking point.

This week we’ve been emailing back and forth. Yes, I initiated the emails. I felt badly that people have been waiting to see the article, in the U.S. and elsewhere, and I wanted to determine if we could find some middle ground.

There might be a light at the end of the tunnel, and we’ll pick it up again next week. I don’t want to appear pushy. But, I’d certainly like to have the article published, not only for myself and the people waiting to see it, but for the writer and photographer who’ve already worked so hard on it. Stay tuned!

I do not understand. An article about me was supposed to be in the newspaper next week. SO excited!

I met with the writer, cooked some yummy dishes. The newspaper photographer took a bunch of photos. I wrote up the recipes and sent them to the writer to send on to the newspaper. I wrote up a timeline of all the things we talked about so she could get them in order. (We talked about SO many things!) She sent me a list of additional questions to answer so she could use them along with what we discussed during the interview.

One of the questions was, “What would you tell someone just starting out in cooking?” My response was, “The only time you need strict measurements is for baking because you’re depending on a chemical reaction. The rest of the time, use what you like, relax, and have fun.”

THEN she sent me “revised” recipes. REVISED recipes? I write really cool recipes, more like descriptions, actually. “Use some of this, use some of that, if you like a little more, add it to the pot.” You know, like your mother cooks, and like my mother cooked! I’ve not had one complaint about the way I write recipes. In fact, people have written to me to tell me that the stress is off them if they don’t have to measure and its much more fun this way!

Well, the writer’s editor refused to publish my recipes the way I write them. I told them if they’re worried, to add a disclaimer, “Watch out. She’s one of those ‘A pinch of this and a pinch of that’ kind of cooks. Here’s her email address if you have any questions!” It would give people a giggle, the newspaper would be off the hook (sheesh), and everyone would enjoy themselves.

The response? “No.”

Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face. How silly can they be?

The response so far from people waiting to see the article? “Stand your ground!,” and I am.

But, still. How silly. These are suposed to be adults! No creativity. No insight. “It’s my way or the highway.” No wonder newspapers are dying…… :(

Hi! I’m Mindy…

That’s the sound of a New York City girl who’s been around the world and back, became a vegetarian, came up with an idea, and decided to get her act together and tell you about it.

I’ve traveled, lived, and worked in a number of locations around the world, from the Middle East to the Pacific, speak some Hebrew, a bit of French and German, and pleasantries in a number of other languages, love many different types of foods, and have puttered around with them all. (I even knew what harissa was when Alton mentioned it on “Next Food Network Star”!) ....Read More

Pretty Veggie name, theme, ideas, and techniques are registered with the Writer's Guild East 2011. Copyright 2012. All information contained in this website, including recipes, is for your personal use only.